Polytetrafluoroethylene-covered stents: 15 years of hope, success and failure

Even after almost 15 years, polytetrafluoroethylene-covered stents are an important part of the armory of cardiac catheterization laboratory. They are invaluable in the emergent management of coronary perforations and are also used in the treatment of coronary aneurysms and fistulae. However, they are no longer routinely used in the treatment of saphenous venous graft disease. Future research may be aimed at premedicating them to effectively treat saphenous venous graft lesions.